


Growing Up is Hard to Do: Why The Sign of Three Was so Devestating

by TheNavelTreatment



Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Analysis, Character Development, Gen, Meta, Sherlock - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-01
Updated: 2014-02-01
Packaged: 2018-01-10 20:04:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1163921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheNavelTreatment/pseuds/TheNavelTreatment
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An examination of Sherlock Holmes as an entirely new character archetype - the man-child-protegé</p>
            </blockquote>





	Growing Up is Hard to Do: Why The Sign of Three Was so Devestating

 

> Sherlock: You really do have to wear the outfit
> 
> Archie: What for?
> 
> Sherlock: Grown-ups like that sort of thing.
> 
> Archie: Why?
> 
> Sherlock: I don’t know, I’ll ask one.

Ahh, the man-child.  This is a character who has popped up quite frequently on film in the past 20 years – hell, it’s arguably the only character Vince Vaughn has played in his entire career. Usually, this is a character who refuses to move past college-frat level; partying, carrying on, refusing any sort of responsibility – that is, until he meets the right woman who makes him grow up. However, in  _The Sign of Three_ , the creators of Sherlock offered a new twist on a tired cliché, and reminded their viewers why growing up was so painful.

Sherlock Holmes is a new version of the man-child, he is, if you will, a man-child-protogé. It’s not that he necessarily refused to grow up – and he’s certainly not partying, as evidenced by THAT stage scene – it’s more that his intelligence grew so fast that the rest of him never had time to catch up.  He was so much smarter than everyone around him he froze in his development, and never continued on the path to maturity. There are certain things that you can only appreciate with time, and those are now a mystery to him (I am dismissive of the virtuous, unaware of the beautiful, and uncomprehending in the face of the happy.) It’s only as an adult that you learn sometimes winning isn’t everything (I will solve your murder, but it takes John Watson to save your life). It’s only as an adult that you learn how to deal with what your most afraid of (You know when you’re scared or something you start wishing it sooner, just to get it all doing? That’s what he’s doing).

Sherlock admits that he’s a child. We’ve never  seen him deal with this before, because we’ve always seen Sherlock in situations where he is in control; crime scenes, the lab, 221b. Once he’s taken out of this environment, he’s forced to confront all the parts of the grownup world he’s ignored thus far, and the emotions that go with them.

> Sherlock: What’s wrong? What happened? Why are you all doing that? John, did I do it wrong?
> 
> John: No you didn’t. Come here.

That exchange was probably the most heartbreaking for me of the entire episode. We’ve never seen Sherlock question, or need approval from, anyone. Yet in this instance, he does from John. It’s at this moment that Sherlock starts to grow up. He’s finally confronted with what he’s been dreading for so long. And he can’t do it alone. Thankfully, he doesn’t have to. In the form of Mary and John, he has role models, and yes even pseudo parents, to help make the transition.  In this case, it’s not a beautiful woman, but friends, friends he didn’t think he would ever have, that inspire the transition.

> Sherlock: Bitterness is a paralytic. Love is a much more vicious motivator.
> 
> From  **A Study in Pink**

Sherlock could have continued on his path, and stayed sarcastic and entitled and aloof. He could have not “gotten involved.” He could have stayed a child. But because he loves John, and he may even love Mary, he changes. He grows up. Even though it’s out of his comfort zone, he throws himself into their special day. It’s no wonder that _The Sign of Three_ is so sad; growing up was painful stretched out over 10 years, I can’t imagine going through it all in a day. When you grow up, sometimes you put others before yourself, and sometimes you try  hard and still fail, and sometimes, yes, you go home alone. Benedict Cumberbatch played the transition perfectly and it’s heartbreaking because you know exactly how he feels. This episode, although it had its lighter moments, is a pivotal point for Sherlock as a character; the transition from man-child to adult. He will go into his next adventures more aware of his actions and their consequences for those around him. He will learn that very often grown-up games don’t come with a happy ending.

> Sherlock: Whatever it takes, whatever happens, from now on I swear I will always be there. Always.

 

 

 


End file.
